How's this for a Christmas present? Two chapters in one day! hope you've been enjoying the story so far and I hope you continue to enjoy it going forward. anyway, on with the show!

...

Chapter 16: Code Green

New Mexico.

Dr. Jane Foster sat at her desk in her lab, bent over an overflowing notebook that contained all her life's work. At the moment, she was sketching out what appeared to be a large tree, with a planet connected to each branch and root. As she put the finishing touches on a planet labeled "nidavelir", Dr. Donald Blake approached her, looking over her shoulder.

"I think I got it right this time." Jane told him, finishing off her sketch before sliding the book towards him. "I even attempted to add the Midgard Serpent."

Blake looked over the notebook, visibly pleased by the results.

"Very nice." he complimented. "Except, nidavelir is over here."

He pointed to its proper spot on Jane's map, eliciting a groan from her. She grabbed a worn-down eraser, beginning her work on clearing the page once again.

"Well, maybe the seventeenth time's the charm." she remarked.

"You are getting better." he encouraged. "Not every mortal can say they've charted the nine realms."

"Maybe it would be easier if I actually saw them." she tried, giving Blake a small smile. "I mean, I've seen Asgard, but I don't think it counts, considering you only took me up there to get that… thing out of me."

"I recall." Blake recollected. "That was quite the ordeal."

"I'm just glad Odin was able to remove it without too much difficulty." Jane commented. "Though I still can't get the look that Sif kept giving me. I swear she hates my guts."

"I doubt that, though maybe a bit… jealous."

"Jealous?" Jane repeated. "She's an Asgardian warrior, and I'm just-"

"The woman who won the heart of the God of Thunder." Agent Coulson's voice interrupted.

Both Jane and Donald turned to see Agent Coulson standing in the doorway. Jane's smile fell, and Donald's eyes narrowed.

"Son of Coul." he greeted with a small nod. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

"And can you please learn to knock?" Jane insisted.

"Sorry." Coulson apologized. "Old habits die hard."

"What are you doing here?" Donald insisted.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. requires your assistance in a matter of National security." Coulson informed them, handing Jane a file on Project Rebirth.

Jane took the file, opening it up. She let out a gasp, tapping Donald on the shoulder and pointing to the picture in the file.

"The Tesseract?" Donald let out. "How did you get a hold of this?!"

"It was recovered from the Arctic ocean days ago, and recently acquired by S.H.I.E.L.D." Coulson explained. "We want you and Dr. Foster to come examine it."

"The Tesseract belongs in Asgard!" Donald insisted. "It is not for the hands of mortal men!"

"He's right!" Jane added. "You've seen what Asgardian technology can do in the wrong hands!"

"Which is why we're calling you two in." Coulson replied. "And I give you my word that once S.H.I.E.L.D gets what it wants, you are free to return the Cube to Asgard."

Donald and Jane exchanged glances, neither of them trusting Coulson's word.

"You know he's lying through his teeth, right?" Jane whispered.

"I just assumed all Midgardian agencies do that." Donald replied.

Jane went to disagree but found herself unable to. She sighed, then returned her gaze to Donald.

"Lying or not, if we don't go and investigate the Tesseract, then S.H.I.E.L.D will just call in someone else. Someone who won't be as careful as us."

Donald let out a sigh of defeat.

"You have a point." he relented before turning to Coulson. "Very well son of Coul, we will aid you. But as soon as you get what you need, the Tesseract returns to Asgard."

"Fair enough." Coulson allowed before turning towards the door. "Do you require a lift to New York, or are you covered in that department?"

"We will accept your offer for a ride." Donald replied, grabbing an umbrella off a hook. "Lead us to your vessel."

Unbeknownst to Jane, Donald, or even Coulson, a fourth person was watching their conversation with great interest. Sealed in an icy prison deep in the heart of Jotenheim, Loki Laufeyson watched the proceedings in the shimmering wall of his cell, a smile on his face.

"So, the Tesseract has come to earth." he mused. "This might just what I need to escape this accursed prison."

With a wave of his hand, he dispelled the image of his brother and his mortal allies.

"Now, all I need is a pawn..." he mused. "Someone that can handle the Tesseract's raw power…"

He summoned up another shimmering image, this one showing a small tavern on the outskirts of Pennsylvania. Inside, a lone man sat at the bar, several empty bottles surrounding him. He was a very scruffy man, and he gave off the aura of a wild animal rather than a man. Loki smiled at the prospect.

"Perfect. Now that… will do quite nicely."

Logan finished off the last of his beer, slamming the empty bottle n the counter hard enough to rattle the others.

"Another." he grumbled.

"That's like your tenth man." the bartender informed him. "Think it might be time to cut you off."

Logan lifted his fist, his claws coming out with a loud sliding noise.

"Cut me off, I cut off your hand." he threatened.

The barkeep gulped hard, sliding another beer towards Logan. The claws went back in as he claimed his beer, taking a gulp. As he did this, the barkeep felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see a tall man with shoulder length black hair in a shimmering black and green suit.

"Why don't you go take a break?" the man suggested.

The barkeep nodded, making a run for the door as the man approached Logan. He leaned on an intricate cane, giving Logan a smile.

"Want another?" he offered.

"Keep 'em coming." Logan replied.

"Of course." the man replied. "Though in return, I was hoping you could help me with a little… project I am working on."

Logan just downed his drink and slammed his glass on the counter.

"I don't help anyone anymore."

"Well that is a shame…" the man let out. "I was so hoping to do things the easy way."

Logan looked up in surprise.

"What do you mean by-"

Before he could finish, the man pressed the end of his cane onto Logan's chest. A strange, blue light began to travel from the tip of the cane, through Logan's body, before gathering in his eyes. It turned his eyes a bright blue as his posture straightened.

"But of course, this will have to do." the man mused, lowering the cane. "You will go to a high security research facility and obtain something for me."

"Name it." Logan requested.

The man smiled at the way things were turning out.

Back on the Helicarrier, Spider-Man was preparing to return to New York City. A large thunderstorm had begun to gather, and if he didn't leave immediately, he would end up stranded in whatever facility the Helicarrier disembarked on.

"So, you're heading back to New York?" Cap asked, walking up to him.

"Yup." Spidey confirmed. "Back to my mundane life of chasing muggers and catching up on homework."

"Sounds fun." Cap commented before offering his hand. "It was a pleasure working with you, Spider-Man."

"I think I should be saying that." Spidey replied, shaking his hand. "But saying Captain America, not Spider-Man."

"You got heart kid." Cap told him. "I can see you being a pretty great hero someday."

Under his mask, Spidey couldn't help but smile at Cap's words.

"Thanks Cap." he told him. "That means a lot."

Up in the cockpit of a nearby helicopter, Agent Hill let out a whistle.

"Let's go kid!" she shouted. "This storm's only gonna get worse!"

"Coming!" Spidey called out. "Hope to team up again sometime Cap!"

He climbed into the helicopter, closing the door as it took off into the ever-darkening sky. Cap watched the copter disappear, his face hardening. He couldn't help but feel that the storm to come was just an omen, one that spelled disaster for everyone.

At the S.H.I.E.L.D. research facility, Fury watched as a research team escorted the Cube, now fully freed of Spider-Man's webbing, to one of the labs. The heroes watched it as well, none of them thrilled with how things had turned out.

"You know, if I didn't think I'd be shot on sight, or worse, I'd steal that Cube and toss it back in the arctic." Jan muttered.

"Same, but there's nothing we can do about it now." Hank lamented.

"Well, there is one thing we can do." Tony offered. "Fury called in a pair of specialists to examine the Cube. The least we can do is let them in on what's really going on."

"Right." Hank agreed.

About that time, another helicopter made its way towards the base. Everyone turned, shielding themselves from the wind and blowing rain as it landed. As the engines died, Agent Coulson jumped out, opening the side door. The first to emerge was Dr. Donald Blake, who stepped into the rain with a serious expression on his face. Ironically, he was holding an umbrella in his hand, but made no moves to open it.

"Whoa… Who is that?" Jan questioned, eying Donald approvingly.

"That is Dr. Donald Blake." Hank supplied, giving Jan a weary glance. "He's a recent addition of the scientific community. Apparently, he's Scandinavian."

Jan let out a whistle, watching as Donald offered a hand to Dr. Jane Foster. Hank shot her a crude glance. She slid out of the copter, immediately leaning into Donald as he wrapped an arm around her protectively. Still, he made no moves to open his umbrella.

"And that's Jane Foster." Hank added. "Her work on trans dimensional physics and the Einstein Rosen Bridge has skyrocketed in the past year. She's been stationed out in New Mexico for a while now."

"Well then, I think it's time for us to talk shop with the good doctors." Tony suggested.

"Speaking of, where's Banner and Rick?" Cap questioned.

"Down in the garage, waiting for the storm to pass." Jan supplied. "Rick said it would be wise if everyone gives them a wide berth. Apparently, Banner's a little upset about what happened."

"Who isn't?" Hank replied.

Jane and Donald stared at the Tesseract, the former eager to examine it, even with the tense circumstances. Donald was still trying to quell his temper, gripping his umbrella so tightly his knuckles were white.

"The power readings the cube is putting out is absolutely amazing." Jane said softly, scribbling in her notebook. "This could power the entire world for… well, ever."

"What concerns me is what Fury would seek to power with it." Donald shared.

"You know we were just thinking the same thing." Tony mused from behind.

Both Jane and Donald turned as Tony, Janet, Hank, and Steve all made their way into the lab.

"Hi." Jane greeted, closing her notebook. "Can we help you?"

"Actually, we were hoping to help you." Tony told her.

"I fail to see how you can." Donald replied before Jane placed a hand on his chest.

"Excuse him." she informed the group. "He's… not from around here."

"Right." Tony let out.

"Look," Hank spoke up. "We came to tell you that Fury has ulterior intentions with the Cube."

"We are already well aware of the dishonesty that has taken root inside of this S.H.I.E.L.D." Donald remarked.

"I'm guessing you've had previous dealings with S.H.I.E.L.D before." Steve noted.

"That we have." Jane replied with a nod. "Though we couldn't exactly turn down a chance to take a look at one of the Jewels of Odin's treasure chamber."

There was a brief pause, then Tony shook his head.

"I'm sorry… what?" Tony let out.

"The Tesseract..." Jane replied, gesturing to the Cube. "You know, the heart of the Casket of Ancient Winters. Laufey's all powerful weapon against Odin."

Once again, there was a pause. Tony then turned towards Hank with a confused look.

"Yeah… How long has she been baking in the New Mexico sun?" he asked.

Donald glared at Tony, pointing his umbrella at him in a threatening gesture.

"You best watch your words." He threatened.

Jane immediately got in between Tony and Donald.

"Easy Donald, it's okay." she insisted. "You remember how Erik and I were when we first learned this stuff."

Donald paused, then lowered his umbrella. Jane let out a sigh of relief, then Janet stepped forward.

"You know, I'm kinda curious about the whole Odin thing now." she commented, hoping to diffuse the situation. "Mind telling the story?"

"Well, I think Donald is more fit to-" Jane began.

"Actually, I rather enjoy when you tell the story." Donald interjected, giving her a nod.

Jane blinked, then turned towards the Cube.

"Alright then." she declared, taking a deep breath before beginning the story. "Over 1000 years ago, Laufey, the King of the Frost Giants, waged war against Odin Allfather, the King of Asgard and Ruler of the Nine Realms. He came to Midgard, or Earth as we call it, planning to lay siege to it first. He brought with him his most powerful weapon, the Casket of Ancient Winters, which plunged the land we know as Scandinavia into ice."

"And the Tesseract?" Steve asked.

"It was the Casket's power source." Jane explained. "More than that, it was the doorway that Laufey used to bring himself and the Frost Giants to our world. Of course, even with it, the Frost Giants stood no chance against the might of Asgard. Laufey fell, and the Casket was seized by Odin. To ensure that the Casket could never be used by any being ever again, Odin tore the Tesseract from it, tossing it into the Bifrost to be lost to the cosmos."

"Huh...wow." Hank remarked.

"Yeah that's a nice little fairy tale." Tony remarked.

"I don't know…" Steve challenged. "Red Skull said the same thing to me back in 1945."

"All legends ring with truth." Donald remarked, adjusting his grip on his umbrella. "And the power that the Tesseract holds… no mortal man should wield it."

"Right." Tony agreed.

Down in the garage, Rick was sitting on the ground with a deck of cards playing a game of solitaire with himself. Bruce was pacing around, full of nervous energy.

"Hey Bruce, why don't you come play a game with me?" Rick offered. "You're just agitating yourself, and neither of us want that."

"Sorry," Bruce apologized. "I just want this storm to end so we can get out of here."

"You and me both." Rick agreed. "I'm sick of spies, liars, and feeling like we can't trust anyone… well, more than usual."

Before Bruce could reply, there was a loud knock at the door of the garage. Rick perked up in confusion.

"Who in their right mind would be out in this weather?" he questioned.

"I have no idea." Bruce replied.

Rick set down his cards, standing up and straightening his back.

"Maybe it's Spider-Man." Rick guessed. "He did try to hear out earlier, but maybe the storm got too bad."

He unlocked the door, coming face to face with a fully costumed Wolverine.

"What the-" Rick tried to let out.

Before he could finish, Wolverine punched Rick to the ground. Seeing his friend fall, Bruce let out a shout of surprise.

"Rick!"

Wolverine turned to Bruce, unsheathing his claws. Bruce ran to help Rick, only to be intercepted by Wolverine. The claws punctured Bruce's stomach, stopping the doctor dead in his tracks. Rick, who was just working on getting back on his feet, let out a gasp when he saw Bruce.

"No!" he screamed.

Rather than fall like Wolverine expected, Bruce began to shake. His slim form began to fill out, splitting the seams on his shirt and stretching the elastic on his pants to the max. His skin turned green, and his horrified grimace became a furious snarl.

"Oh no… Not now..." Rick let out.

The once meager Bruce Banner now towered over Rick and Wolverine as the unstoppable behemoth he had transformed into, the Incredible Hulk. Hulk let out a roar of unbridled anger before trying to smash Wolverine. Wolverine just jumped out of the way of the large fists and slashed at Hulk's chest, causing the big guy to cry out even more.

While the two battled it out, Rick grabbed a paging phone, slamming down the call button in a panic.

"Code green in the garage!" he screamed. "Get the hell out the building! We have a code green in the garage! This is not a drill people, move it!"

Back in the lab, Rick's panicked call came over the speakers. Not long after, an alarm began blaring with a mechanical voice calling for a full evacuation.

"The Hulk's loose?" Hank let out. "How is that possible?"

"We better go make sure the big guy doesn't destroy too much of the building." Tony remarked, sliding his visor back down over his face.

"Right." Cap agreed, slinging his shield onto his back. "Let's move."

The heroes all exited the lab, leaving Jane and Donald alone. They shared a silent nod, then followed suit.

Rick crouched behind a jeep, watching as Hulk and Wolverine kept at it. The big guy had managed to toss the mad mutant into the ground hard and was about to bring a jet down on top of him. Before he could though, a repulsor blast from Iron Man caused him to back up a bit and drop it.

"Okay big guy, I think you've had enough excitement for one day." Tony told him.

"Mr. Stark, move!" Rick warned.

Tony didn't even have time to blink before Hulk jumped at Tony, grabbing him by his legs. Hulk then slammed Tony into the ground repeatedly before letting go. Hulk raised his arms about to bring them down on him, but Cap leapt at Hulk, knocking him in the head with his shield. Hulk turned around to see Cap landing on the ground, ready to go again.

"Leave them alone!" Cap called out. "Fight me Hulk!"

"Are you insane?!" Rick screamed. "He'll kill you!"

Hulk roared at the captain before charging at him. Cap ran towards him and shoved his shield at his legs, causing the massive monster to flip over onto his back. As Cap turned around, Hulk randomly swung an arm out at Cap, knocking him into a wall. As he slid off and onto the ground, Rick ran over to help him up.

"You ok Cap?" Rick asked.

"I've been through worse." Cap reassured. "How do we stop that thing?"

"I can handle that bit." Rick assured him. "If I can get close to him, I can talk to him and calm him down. However, you might want to go and stop that claw guy he was fighting."

"Claw guy?" Cap asked.

"The midget in the yellow spandex with metal claws coming out of his knuckles."

He looked over and saw Wolverine running deeper into the compound.

"I'll head after him." Cap told him. "Stark, you, Pym, and Wasp stand by if Rick's plan doesn't work."

"Right." Tony agreed.

With that, Cap ran after Wolverine, leaving Rick to try and tame the Incredible Hulk. Rick ran over to Hulk, waving his arms to get his attention.

"Big guy!" Rick shouted. "Hulk! Over here!"

Hulk turned around, his anger stifled at the sight of his old friend.

"Hey there." Rick called out, his tone softer. "It's okay. You're okay. I'm okay. Everything's okay."

He slowly walked towards Hulk, holding out his hands like one would to a wild animal. Hulk knelt, supporting himself on a hand, leaning closer to Rick.

"That's it." Rick continued, smiling as he reached for Hulk's shoulders. "Everything's going to be alright. Nothing is going to happen to-"

Rick was interrupted by a blast of gunfire which struck Hulk in the back. Rick's eyes went wide as he screamed.

"NO!"

Outside, a S.H.I.E.L.D jet was hovering in front of one of the many holes in the walls of the garage, aiming right at the Hulk. Hulk turned towards it, shouting in anger before leaping towards it.

"No! Hulk!" Rick screamed. "I had him! I had HIM!"

Inside the jet, the pilot immediately regretted his actions as the Hulk leapt towards him. The jet began spiraling out of control, aiming for a crash landing out in the woods surrounding the facility. The heroes, Jane, Donald, and Rick all watched it crash in the distance.

"I've got to get out there before he goes on a rampage." Rick declared.

"I can hold off the beast long enough for his tamer to reclaim his hold." Donald announced.

"No offense Dr. Blake." Iron Man spoke, while hovering in the air. "But this seems way out of your league. Let us handle it."

Jane snorted, eliciting a confused look from the heroes.

"Mr. Stark, I don't think you know who you're talking to." she informed him. "Donald, do it."

Donald slammed his umbrella into the floor, and the second he did, a bolt of lightning struck him. His entire form became awash in blinding light as his earlier attire fell away to reveal Asgardian armor, a long red cape, and a rather large hammer where his umbrella had been.

"Meet Thor Odinson." Jane introduced. "Prince of Asgard, and the God of Thunder."

"Oh. My. God..." Janet let out, her jaw practically on the ground.

"Um… Dr. Foster," Tony let out. "It's possible… I might owe you an apology."

"We will discuss this at length later." Thor declared. "Mr. Stark, can you transport the beast tamer to his companion?"

"Sure, just need you to keep the jolly green giant busy." Iron Man replied.

"That will not be a problem." Thor informed him. "Come my friends! To battle!"

He gave Mjolnir a spin, shooting through the hole in the roof towards the forest. Jane watched her go, a smile on her face.

"That will never get old." she mused.

...

Back with Hulk, he had just recovered from falling from the jet when Thor landed in front of him.

"You possess great power creature," Thor commended. "Surrender now and no harm will come to you. You have my word."

Hulk responded by socking Thor in the face, sending him skidding across the grass and colliding with a tree. Thor slowly picked himself up, straightening his winged helmet so he could see his new adversary running towards him.

"Very well, you do not have my word." Thor remarked.

As Hulk came close, Thor swung his hammer at him, clocking him in the jaw and sending him flying. As Hulk landed, he let out a growl of pure anger. He uprooted a nearby tree and threw at the Asgardian. Thor ran towards it and jumped on top of it, before leaping into the air and throwing his hammer at Hulk. Hulk tried catching it, but it only dragged him to the ground. Hulk tried getting up while picking up the hammer, but it wouldn't budge. Hulk then got to his feet and tried using both hands to uproot the hammer, but it wouldn't budge an inch. In fact, it just seemed to crater the earth around it every time Hulk tried.

Suddenly, the hammer flew from the ground, and Hulk's hands, into Thor's. Thor then proceeded to continuous throw and call back the hammer, each throw striking Hulk in the chest. Finally having enough, Hulk clapped his hands together, sending out a massive shockwave sending Thor flying back. Tony, Jan, and Hank noticed this and got worried.

"Jeez, can anything stop that thing?" Iron Man asked.

"Yeah, me." Rick answered from below Iron Man. "Get me close enough, and keep Fury from screwing this up again, and I'll have him calm in a moment."

"No offense kid, but I don't think jolly green is in a listening mood." Tony noted.

"Unless something were to hold him down." Hank hypothesized.

"Um, Dr. Pym..." Rick began. "I'm going to say this as nice as I can; Ant-Man doesn't stand a chance against Hulk."

"No… but maybe 'Giant-Man' can."

Jan's eyes went wide.

"Hank, that's still in the development stage!" she exclaimed.

"I know, but we're running out of time and options." Hank told her. "If Rick can't get Bruce back, the Hulk will tear this place apart."

"But you could tear yourself in half!" Janet argued. "Or worse!"

"Oh, come on, I did it in the lab once." Hank reminded her.

"And you passed out immediately after!" Jan shot back.

"What choice do we have?" Hank asked. "Jan… trust me."

She hesitated, then looked away.

"If you died out there, I'm gonna kill you." she informed him.

"I know." Hank replied.

With that, Hank jumped off the ant he was riding and hit his enlarging button on his left glove twice, flooding him with blue Pym particle energy.

Meanwhile, Hulk had picked up Thor by the cape and was about to start wailing on him, when suddenly, a large hand came out of nowhere shoving the Hulk into the ground, releasing Thor from his grip. Thor looked up to see Hank enlarged to giant status, much to the awe of him and the others.

"Ok, tiny dude is big now." Tony remarked.

"Hulk, just calm down." Hank insisted. "None of us want to hurt you."

Much to his surprise, Hulk grabbed hold of the hand and flipped Hank over onto the ground. As Hank started getting up, Hulk jumped onto his throat and started choking him.

"No!" Jan cried out as she flew towards Hulk and continuously blasted him in the face.

It was irritating to the big guy to the point that he let go and dropped to the ground. Jan flew down and continued zapping him, but this time Hulk grabbed her and attempted to squeeze her.

"Hulk! Stop it!" Rick called out, running towards him. "Stop!"

Not thinking, Hulk swung his arm around at Rick, knocking him into a tree. Rick hit hard, letting out a shout as he did before falling to the ground. His head sagged forward as blood began to drip from his head. When Hulk saw this, it was as if all the fight suddenly left him. He dropped Wasp, who quickly resumed flying and made her way over to Hank.

"Hank, are you okay?" she asked him nervously.

Hank shrunk down to normal size before responding.

"Fine." Hank replied, clutching his throat. "If not a bit sore."

Tony immediately ran for Rick, pulling the kid up.

"JARVIS, I want a full medical scan asap!" he demanded.

"Minor concussion to the lower cranium, seven bruised ribs, and minor lacerations across his arms, but otherwise unharmed." JARVIS listed, showing Tony a full readout on the corner of his visor.

Rick let out a groan, turning towards Hulk.

"Hulk…?" he croaked, his vision blurry.

Hulk just backed away slowly, almost seeming horrified by what he had done. He then turned around and leapt through the air. Rick's eyes went wide, and he attempted to stand. Almost immediately, his head began swimming and his legs gave out. He collapsed back into Tony's arms, groaning as he did.

"I have to… go after him… he needs me..." Rick moaned.

"Easy kid." Tony told him. "You're in no shape to go after anyone."

"You don't understand..." Rick tried. "He can't be alone… not now… I'm all he's got..."

"Just rest, beast tamer." Thor told him. "We will handle your ogre companion later."

"Right." Jan agreed. "I think we need to be worried about the 'claw guy' that sparked this whole rage fest in the first place."

"Then let's see if Cap needs help bringing him down." Tony suggested.

Wolverine's claws tore through the door of the lab holding the Tesseract. Once the metal was sufficiently weakened, he kicked the door in, waltzing right up to the cube. He sheathed his claws, flexing his fingers before plunging them into the Cube. He screamed, blue energy tearing him apart just as quickly as his healing abilities pieced him back together. After a good minute of this never-ending cycle of pain, Wolverine pulled his hands out of his, the Tesseract pulsating ominously.

At that moment, Cap ran into the room, accompanied by Black Widow and Hawkeye, both with weapons at the ready.

"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to step away from the Cube." Natasha called out.

"Nat, I don't think he's in a listening mood." Clint told her.

Wolverine let out a snarl, unsheathing his claws as he eyed the three. Instinctively, he charged out at them. Cap stepped forward and blocked an oncoming claw strike with his shield. He then shoved him off, causing him to skid back a bit. Hawkeye then shot him with one arrow after another. In a few seconds, Wolverine was stuck full of arrows. Just then, they all started blinking in sync before exploding. The three braced themselves as they went off. As the smoke cleared, Wolverine just stood there, costume torn a bit, but otherwise unscathed. Wolverine then lunged at Hawkeye.

Before he could land a hit, Cap came in between Wolverine and Hawkeye, his shield taking the brunt of the damage. Wolverine was shocked to find that his claws did not cut through the shield, but that shock turned to anger as he lashed out again, his attacks in a wild frenzy. After ducking under one, Widow began shooting at him with her stingers, which seemed to do nothing.

Wolverine then ran at her and tried slicing at her, but she quickly ducked out of the way, swiping at his legs. As he fell, he swiped at her legs as well, knocking her to the ground. He quickly got up and tried to stab her, but suddenly got hit in the face by Cap's shield, knocking him to the ground. As Clint gave Widow a hand up, Cap stood over the fallen Wolverine, who was rubbing his head and groaning. He blinked, the light blue from his eyes fading to their usual dark brown.

"Ugh… That hurt..." he muttered.

He pulled off his cowl, rubbing at his smarting head as the bruise already began to fade. As soon as Cap saw the face underneath, his shield clattered out of his hand.

"...Jimmy?" Cap let out.

Wolverine blinked, slowly looking up. He rubbed his eyes, then got to his feet.

"Captain?" he replied in shock. "Is that you?"

"It's me Jimmy." Cap reassured. "But how are you still alive? And still the same age?... part of your little 'talent'?"

"Something like that." Wolverine replied. "How the hell are you alive? I may not remember much, but I remember that plane going down, taking you and the sarge with it."

"Bucky kicked me out of the plane before it blew." Cap explained. "I blacked out as soon as I hit the water. The next thing I know I'm waking up in modern day. S.H.I.E.L.D. thinks the intense cold combined with the serum put me in a state of suspended animation."

Wolverine just chuckled, shaking his head.

"I don't care how you survived, I'm just glad you did." he declared. "Though maybe you could tell me what the hell I'm doing here."

"I was hoping you could tell me that." Cap admitted. "You came in here and attacked Bruce Banner and his friend. Then you tampered with that."

He pointed at the cube, which was fluctuating, much to the dismay of the others. About that time, the other heroes, with Jane in Thor's arms and Rick still in Tony's, came in as well.

"Odin's beard..." Thor cursed.

"Something's coming through." Jane gulped.

"Coming through?" Wolverine asked.

"The cube is a doorway to the other end of space." Tony explained. "And from the looks of things, something's coming out from the other side."

The entire room began to shake, the cube sparking violently with each pulse it gave off. Light began to swirl around in, the building shaking harder as a hum began to fill the air. And then, a beam of light shot out from the cube, striking the wall behind it and opening a swirling portal. Through the portal, a hazy image of an icy structure could be seen, but that was all they could make out before the portal completely destabilized. It erupted into a shockwave of power, nearly knocking everyone off their feet. Eventually, the lights dimmed, the dust settled, and where the portal had been, now stood a lone figure in green robes and a golden, horned helmet.

"Greetings Midgard." he greeted. "Kneel before me."